2 Chronicles 20:17

Hebrew (Westminster Leningrad Codex)

English Translation

You shall not need to fight in this [battle]: set yourselves, stand you still, and see the salvation of Yahweh with you, O Judah and Jerusalem; don't be afraid, nor be dismayed: tomorrow go out against them: for Yahweh is with you.

World English Bible · Public Domain

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הִתְיַצְּב֣וּ

yâtsab

H3320

“stand”

Verb, Hithpael, Imperative, 2nd Person, Masculine, Plural

Appears 48× in the Hebrew Bible
First appears at Exodus 2:4

Full BDB Definition

Origin: a primitive root

TWOT: 894

to place, set, stand, set or station oneself, present oneself - (Hithpael) to station oneself, take one's stand, stand, present oneself, stand with someone

About this verse

These counts appear in no published source. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged text and Lemma’s own curated glosses. What Lemma adds →

22: words
18: distinct lemmas
Historical: section

Shared distinctive vocabulary

הִתְיַצְּב֣וּ to stand H3320 occurs in 45 verses of the Hebrew Bible. Also found in:

Grammatical profile

7 verbs
7 nouns
1 pronoun
3 prepositions
4 particles

Verb forms

לְהִלָּחֵ֣ם Niphal · Infinitive Construct
הִתְיַצְּב֣וּ Hithpael · Imperative
עִמְד֡וּ Qal · Imperative
וּרְא֣וּ Qal · Imperative
תִּֽירְאוּ֙ Qal · Jussive
תֵּחַ֔תּוּ Niphal · Jussive
צְא֣וּ Qal · Imperative

Repetition

Words recur within this verse — often emphatic in Hebrew:

יְהוָ֨ה LORD H3068 ×2
עִמָּכֶ֜ם with H5973 ×2
אַל not H408 ×2

Hebrew & Septuagint length

In English translation the verse runs 42 words from the Hebrew and 41 from the Septuagint (LXX English) — closely comparable.

A rough comparison of the two English renderings, which tokenize alike — not a word-level alignment.

Word counts can differ between the Hebrew and the Greek without any difference in meaning — e.g. the Hebrew direct-object marker אֵת has no separate Greek word, and Greek often adds the article ὁ.

In the original languages it is 22 Hebrew tokens and 29 Greek tokens — but the two are counted differently (Hebrew bundles its prefixes and suffixes into one token; the Greek is in lemma form), so that isn’t a like-for-like length.

Cross-references

Topical passages linked to 2 Chronicles 20:17 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — connected by theme and wording, ordered by reader-vote popularity; previews shown in the World English Bible.

Exodus 14:13–14 Moses said to the people, "Don't be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of Yahweh, which he will work for you today: for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you shall never see them again.
2 Chronicles 15:2 and he went out to meet Asa, and said to him, Hear you me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: Yahweh is with you, while you are with him; and if you seek him, he will be found of you; but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.
Isaiah 41:10 Don't you be afraid, for I am with you; don't be dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you; yes, I will help you; yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.
Psalms 46:10–11 "Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth."
Matthew 28:20 teaching them to observe all things that I commanded you. Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
2 Chronicles 32:8 with him is an arm of flesh; but with us is Yahweh our God to help us, and to fight our battles. The people rested themselves on the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.
Lamentations 3:26 It is good that a man should hope and quietly wait for the salvation of Yahweh.
Numbers 14:9 Only don't rebel against Yahweh, neither fear the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defense is removed from over them, and Yahweh is with us: don't fear them.

Psalms 46:7 Yahweh of Hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
Romans 8:31 What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
Isaiah 30:15 For thus said the Lord Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel, In returning and rest shall you be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength. You would not:
Matthew 1:23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, And shall bring forth a son. They shall call his name Immanuel;" Which is, being interpreted, "God with us."
Isaiah 8:9–10 Make an uproar, O you peoples, and be broken in pieces! And give ear, all you of far countries: gird yourselves, and be broken in pieces! Gird yourselves, and be broken in pieces!
2 Chronicles 20:22–23 When they began to sing and to praise, Yahweh set liers-in-wait against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were struck.
Amos 5:14 Seek good, and not evil, That you may live; And so Yahweh, the God of hosts, will be with you, As you say.
2 Timothy 4:22 The Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.

Exodus 14:25 He took off their chariot wheels, and they drove them heavily; so that the Egyptians said, "Let's flee from the face of Israel, for Yahweh fights for them against the Egyptians!"
Isaiah 30:7 For Egypt helps in vain, and to no purpose: therefore have I called her Rahab who sits still.

Cross-references courtesy of OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0).

Hebrew and Greek witnesses Masoretic Hebrew ↔ Greek Septuagint

The same verse in the two great witnesses to the Old Testament, shown verse-for-verse.

These are two independent witnesses, not word-aligned to each other, and the Septuagint is shown in lemma (dictionary) form.

Hebrew 2 Chronicles 20:17 Masoretic · Westminster Leningrad Codex

לֹ֥א לָכֶ֖ם לְהִלָּחֵ֣ם בָּזֹ֑את הִתְיַצְּב֣וּ עִמְד֡וּ וּרְא֣וּ אֶת יְשׁוּעַת֩ יְהוָ֨ה עִמָּכֶ֜ם יְהוּדָ֣ה וִֽירוּשָׁלִַ֗ם אַל תִּֽירְאוּ֙ וְאַל תֵּחַ֔תּוּ מָחָר֙ צְא֣וּ לִפְנֵיהֶ֔ם וַיהוָ֖ה עִמָּכֶֽם

You shall not need to fight in this [battle]: set yourselves, stand you still, and see the salvation of Yahweh with you, O Judah and Jerusalem; don't be afraid, nor be dismayed: tomorrow go out against them: for Yahweh is with you.

World English Bible · Public Domain

Greek LXX 2 Chronicles 20:17 Septuagint · lemma form

οὐ σύ εἰμί πολεμέω οὗτος συνἵημι καί ὁράω ὁ σωτηρία κύριος μετά σύ ἰουδά καί ἰερουσαλήμ μή φοβέω μηδέ πτοέω αὔριον ἐκἔρχομαι εἰς ἀπάντησις αὐτός καί κύριος μετά σύ

It is not for you to fight: understand these things, and see the deliverance of the Lord with you, Juda and Jerusalem: fear not, neither be afraid to go forth to-morrow to meet them; and the Lord shall be with you.

LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) · Public Domain

Hebrew: Westminster Leningrad Codex (CC BY 4.0). Greek: Septuagint (public domain); English from LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) (Public Domain). How the Septuagint differs from the Hebrew →

Commentary

Notes on 2 Chronicles 20:17 from classic Christian and Jewish commentators (each source and its license shown beneath its notes). The classic Christian expositions comment on the surrounding passage and are grouped to its opening verse, so a note may address several verses; the Jewish commentaries on the Tanakh (Rashi and others) are per-verse, so they appear only where the commentator wrote on this verse.

Lemma curates 59 commentaries, every one of them public domain or Creative Commons licensed, each selected and text-cleaned for this edition rather than reprinted as found. About our sources →

Trapp's Complete Commentary

John Trapp

2Ch 20:17 Ye shall not [need] to fight in this [battle]: set yourselves, stand ye [still], and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the LORD [will be] with you.

Ver. 17. Set yourselves, stand ye still.] The soldier’s motto is, Nec fugere nec sequi: Neither flee nor follow. the true Christian’s is, Nec temere, nec timide. Neither rashly nor fearful. So here, neither fly upon your enemies, nor flee from them.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Biblical Illustrator

Joseph S. Exell

2Ch_20:17

Ye shall not need to fight in this battle.

The conditions and certainty of obtaining Gods deliverance

I. That since our enemies designs are known to us, we ought to set ourselves, that is, make what provision we can against them.

II. That having thus set ourselves, we must then stand still, that is, do nothing which is unlawful, although it be for, our own preservation.

1. By doing any unlawful action we deprive ourselves of Gods care and protection.

2. By doing anything unlawful we bring a scandal upon our religion.

3. To do evil, although for our own preservation, would be most likely to unsettle and ruin us. When once we break down the fences of duty, who can tell where we shall stop? If we allow ourselves the liberty of doing one sinful act, we may easily be prompted on to commit a thousand.

III. Repentance and amendment of life being supposed, we haste all reason to hope that we shall see the salvation of God.

1. Whatever our danger, God hath sufficient power to save and deliver us.

2. This is to be inferred from the design of Gods sending judgments upon any nation. (Jer_18:7). (Thomas Lynford, A.M.)

For the Lord is with you.--

The power behind us

In my firewood factory we use a circular saw for cutting timber. Until recently this saw was worked by a crank turned by men. It was slow work, and we bought a gas engine. The saw, driven by this engine, does more work and at less cost. It is the same saw, but the difference lies in the power that drives it. It was driven by hand-power, now by an equivalent for steam, we only need to keep the connecting band tight. It is not a question of our abilities, but of the power behind us. (F. B. Meyer.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Geneva Bible (1599)

Geneva Bible translators

Or, deliverance.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 17. For the Lord will be with you.] "The WORD of the Lord shall be your Helper." - Targum.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(17) Ye shall not need to fight.—It is not for you to fight. (Comp. 1Ch_5:1; 1Ch_15:2.)

In this.—Herein, in this instance. (Comp. for the phrase, 2Ch_19:2.)

Set yourselves (i.e., “withstand,” 2Ch_20:6).—Station yourselves, take your stand. Here the next verb, stand ye still, seems added as an explanation, and is, perhaps, a marginal gloss. “Fear not: take your stand, and see the salvation of the Lord,” was the command of Moses to Israel at the Red Sea, just before the Great Deliverance (Exo_14:13). (Comp. also the words of Psa_46:8, “Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he hath made in the earth.”)

The Lord with you.—Some explain the connection thus: “The Lord (who is) with you.” Iahveh ‘immdkhem may, perhaps, be compared with ‘immânû êl, “with us God” (Isa_7:14; Isa_8:8); it will then be a Divine title, suited to the present emergency. But, more probably, the stop should be at the Lord; and with you, O Judah and Jerusalem! is an elliptic expression, meaning “He is, or will be with you,” &c, as in 2Ch_19:6. (Comp. the refrain of Psalms 46, “The Lord of hosts is with us! The God of Jacob is our refuge.”)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne

17. see the salvation] Cp. Exo_14:13.

will be with you] R.V. is with you; cp. 2Ch_15:2.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

John Gill's Exposition

Ye shall not need to fight in this battle,.... Since the Lord would fight for them:

set yourselves, stand ye still; present themselves they might, as if ready to engage; and keep their ground, not giving way in the least, but would have no need to strike a stroke:

and see the salvation of the Lord with you; which he would work for them, see Exo 14:13,

and Judah, and Jerusalem, fear not, nor be dismayed; which is repeated for the confirmation of them:

tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord will be with you; to protect them, fight for them, and give them victory; the Targum is,"the Word of the Lord shall be your help.''

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Whedon's Commentary on the Bible

Daniel D. Whedon

17. Stand… and see the salvation of the Lord — So Moses commanded Israel when Jehovah was about to destroy their enemies in the Red Sea. Compare Exo_14:13-14.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Pulpit Commentary

Stand and see the salvation of the Lord with you. The grand original of these words (Exo_14:13) would be known to both Jahaziel and Jehoshaphat.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Rashi

Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (Rashi)

set yourself This refers back to (verse 15) “for the war is not yours.”

and see the salvation of the Lord This refers back to the above: “Have You, our God, not caused us to inherit (sic)?” And the Holy One, blessed be He, said to them, “You are right. It is up to Me to preserve it in your hands.”

Tomorrow go forth before them and I shall wage war on your behalf. And they believed, and hurried, and arose early in the morning.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

Lesson kit

Teaching starters — assembled from the data on this page, not authored interpretation. Every prompt links to the verse data it draws on. Edit before teaching.

2 Chronicles, in the Historical, opens this verse with 22 words (18 distinct Hebrew lemmas). Its most distinctive word is yâtsab (“to stand”). A historical commentator’s framing appears above. Read the whole chapter for the surrounding context.

Discussion questions

The word yâtsab carries the sense “to stand.” How does it shape the verse?
Exodus 2:4 shares the word «to stand» with this verse. How do the two illuminate each other?
“LORD” occurs 2× in this one verse. What is the effect of the repetition?
The translations on this page render this verse differently — a whole-verse word diff, not a word-by-word alignment. What might account for the different wordings?
The verb «לְהִלָּחֵ֣ם» is Niphal Infinitive Construct. How does its form color the action?
Reading how Trapp's Complete Commentary and The Biblical Illustrator read this verse, where do the two commentators agree and where do they part?

Things to notice

This verse counts 22 Hebrew ↔ 29 Greek words.
These translations choose different wording for 21 words in this verse.
“LORD” occurs 2× in this single verse.
18 distinct Hebrew lemmas span 22 words in this verse.